Page 131 of The War of Wings
My eyes locked on his, trailing him as he shifted back and forth on his feet, impatiently waiting for my response. Steely determination and raw power coursed through me, my voice low when I finally spoke. “Where is he?”
Malosym clicked his tongue. “You want me to return him already? Before the fun has even commenced? Come on, Petra. I know that Inkwell upbringing put more fight in you than that.”
“Where is he?” I repeated as my lip curled back. Flames danced beneath my skin, begging for permission to be set free. Not yet.
“I’ll return him to you on one condition.”
“I’ve met your conditions already. I’m here alone, am I not? I have no army or weapons. Nowwhere is he?”
He raised his hand, wisps of smoke stirring with his movements as he pinched two fingers together. “One more miniscule condition.”
“You’ve taken everything I have to give,” I seethed. “There is nothing left.”
His eyes darkened as he extended a hand toward me. “Join me.”
A humorless laugh erupted from my throat. “Join you? Really?”
“Burn the world alongside me, Petra. You can’t deny the darkness that lives within you, the joy you feel when you allow yourself to be lost in its allure. Let it out. Let itflourish. You are a part of my bloodline, after all.”
I prickled at the sound of the word, at the antagonizing glimmer in his eyes. “I may have a darkness inside me, but is there no goodness inside you?” I asked. The question seemed to come from nowhere, but I found myself wanting his answer. “You want my darkness to flourish. Why can’t you do the same for your goodness? You created Katia. There must be some light in there somewhere.”
He ignored my words, taking a bold step toward me. “Join me and the little court you’ve made for yourself will be spared.”
I knew better than to trust my first reaction to his words. The thought of mylittle courtbeing spared from Malosym’s wrath provoked an undeniable, primal surge of protectiveness. But I knew each word had been hand selected to do just that — provoke me.
“You’re forgetting something very important here, Malosym,” I continued. “You’re forgetting I’m not afraid to die for this. In fact, I’m verywillingto die for this.” Sparks began to dance against my palms.
“There’s no part of you that wants to let that darkness take hold?” he asked, taking another step in my direction. I fought the urge to step back, instead digging my feet deeper in the sand. “That’s the prophecy, isn’t it? The Daughter of Katia will burn the world. Step into that power, Petra. Fulfill the prophecy.”
“That’s the prophecyyoureleased into the world. That’s what you wanted people to believe, so you could convince someone else to do your dirty work and keep my blood from staining your hands.” This time, I took a step toward him, staring up into the empty pits that were his eyes. “I don’t share that fear with you, Malosym. I’ll gladly stain my hands with your blood. I’ll wear it as a badge of honor. I’ve come into my power, and there’s only one thing that can kill me now.”
“You know my plans are not to kill you. I want to introduce you to your parents. A little family reunion of sorts. Though, I heard you’ve already met.” His smirk deepened, his depthless, swirling eyes narrowing, assessing me for even the tiniest reaction to his words. “I’m sure they’d love to have you come stay with them. Of course, if there’s not enough room, I could always just kill them.”
“Maybe an Extos could’ve killed a Forgotten Saint in the Old World. But not here. Because if you could kill them, you would’ve done it a long time ago.”
He clicked his tongue. “Maybe so. But it’s just so much fun to keep you guessing.”
“You don’t scare me, Malosym.”
“What if I tell you my forces are on their way here? That you can try to take me down, but all I need is a handful of Occulti to restrain you and bend you to my will?”
I waved my arms to the beach around us. “Go ahead and conjure up your forces. Bring them all. I don’t care. But you, Malosym, will die today.” Flames licked up my wrists, fury pushing out from between my ribs, begging for a release. Not until I have Cal.
Malosym’s smirk morphed into a full-blown smile, sending an involuntary shudder through my body. “I don’t need to conjure them here. They’re already in Araqina.”
My flames fizzled and died. My mouth fell open. And my heart dropped from my chest into my stomach. “What did you just say?”
“I can admit, the army you’ve built for yourself is rather impressive. But they’re easily outnumbered by my Occulti. I’ve sent half my drivas, too, and my current total stands around one hundred. I know your education was lacking, but even you can manage to do that math, right?”
The Occulti were in Araqina. And fifty drivas. Fifty fucking drivas.
I reached for the line in my head connecting me to Adorex.Get back to the city,I thought, willing the desperation and panic to travel down the connection.The Occulti are in Araqina.Gehenna and Rixa were the only two drivas there right now.Adorex!I screamed down the line.
No answer. Fuck.
Every passing heartbeat quickened my spiral, every shallow breath twisting together my rage and my fear. And they could only coil so tightly before they snapped. I tamped down the urge to lunge for him, to unleash the years of fire he’d stoked within me. He had Cal, and until he was safely off this beach, I was at his mercy. It would be thelast fucking timeI’d be at his mercy.
Adorex, please, I screamed in my head.Can you hear me? Get to Araqina!
